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Do 40 Pushups

Drop and give us 20, soldier. Twice. Why? Because pushups measure upper-body endurance—the ability to use your strength over time. If you can crank out 40 pushups, we guarantee that your body won't quit when everything's on the line—like when you're carrying a kid out of a burning building (or hauling your wife's luggage through three airport terminals).

The Test: Lower your body until your upper arms are parallel to the floor, then push yourself up. Repeat as many times as you can.

Build an Upper Body for the Long Run: Try this program from Charles Staley, a strength coach in Las Vegas. It will get your upper-body endurance to fit-man level in 12 workouts. Perform sets of half the number of pushups that you completed in the test—resting 60 seconds between sets—until you've done a total of 40 pushups. (For example, if you did 12 pushups in the test, you'll do seven sets of six pushups.)

Each workout (do it every 4 days), deduct 5 seconds from the rest interval. After 12 workouts, you'll be able to do 40 pushups without rest.

Bonus Tip: Time how long it takes you to do as many pushups as you can. Then rest for the same time period, and repeat the process two to four times. You'll quickly improve your upper-body endurance.